A Night of Family
by J's Royal King
Summary: Asana Kouko had been dating Todoroki Natsuo for two years and three months and had never met his family.


Asana Kouko had been dating Todoroki Natsuo for two years and three months and had never met his family. She knew he had a family, he wasn't an orphan, but whenever she had tried to bring it up in the beginning of their relationship he would brush it off, change the topic, or close up completely. It was easy to see it was a touchy subject so she let it drop. At the end of their first year together he mentioned in a passing comment that he had been visiting his mother once a month. Kouko was relieved, she had been worried that he was cheating during his monthly excursions to another city. She mentioned a while late that she would like to go with him to meet his mother, but he had gotten quiet and pulled away from her with a simple "I don't think that's a good idea." And again, she stopped asking questions about his family.

When they moved in together a half a year later she was surprised to see him put up several photographs of what seemed to be his family. She had never spent much time in his apartment because of his noisy roommate so this was the first time she was really seeing his personal belongings. There weren't many photos, and there didn't seem to be a family photo, simply several photos of different people that resembled each other. There was a picture of a white haired woman looking out a window at a sunset, her back to the camera. A photo of Natsuo standing with his arm around a young woman who seemed to be him in female form, she had the same add hair as him, white with red streaks, same round face shape, and the same eyes. And one, taken from a distance, of the white haired woman and a young man, also with white hair, sitting in a garden facing each other, though it was too far away to make out any clear details. The last one, stored in a cluttered corner, as if purposefully placed behind other things, is a picture of a group of four children sitting around a play table, obviously catering to the girl as she hosts a tea party, there was Natsuo, his female twin, though it was clear in this photo that Natsuo is older, the young man, and another boy with red hair that isn't in any other photos. Kouko didn't say anything about the additions to their apartment, but she did put decorations around them, and added her own family photos.

In their second year together Kouko was finally going to meet Natsuo's family. The week before he had brought up at dinner that his younger brother was about to graduate high school and that he would be meeting with his siblings to celebrate and she could come if she wanted. On the inside Kouko was ecstatic, she was going to meet his family, but on the outside she stayed calm and said that it would be nice to meet them. She didn't want to scare him and he take back the invitation. They had been dating long enough, they lived together, and he had met her family many times, it was time for her to meet his family.

So here the two of them are on a train to his sister's apartment where they were meeting. Natsuo hadn't given her any more information on his family and she didn't know what to expect. Natsuo was a goofy, happy guy, but he always got upset when his family mentioned, and she knows he goes to therapy and she suspects it has to do with his childhood. His family obviously means a lot to him, and that just makes them more mysterious.

They got off at a station in the middle of Osaka and Natsuo said it wasn't too far from his sister's place so they would walk the rest of the way. Kouko was bursting with questions, but Natsuo was being uncharacteristically quiet. He was normally a happy, bubbly person, telling her stories, or random facts, or asking her about something she had learned in class, or done at work, but as they walked through the residential district, he was silent. Kouko wanted to ask his siblings names, their ages, if his parents would be there. And the most burning question; what happened? But she too stayed silent, letting him stay within his own thoughts, and she stayed within her own, daydreaming of meeting a beautiful, friendly, happy family, but knowing it would not be true.

They walked up to a modest apartment complex, meant for young couples, and maybe students from the nearby college, they stopped at door 236 and Natsuo took a deep breath before knocking on the plain door.

"Coming!" a female voice called from inside and Kouko could hear hurried footsteps through the thin door. It was pulled open by the young woman from Natsuo's photographs with the hair that matched his, albeit an older version. "Natsuo," she called cheerfully and embraced him in a hug, "it's been too long!" She pulled back and simply looked at him for a second while he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. Realizing that they were still standing in the hall dawned on the woman and she ushered them into the apartment. It was larger than Kouko had thought it would be, they immediately stepped into a living area, with a kitchen to the left and a TV and couches set up to the right. It was brightly colored and decorated, making it cheerful and welcoming, matching its resident.

When Natsuo and Kouko had slipped off their shoes and made it further into the room the woman introduced herself. "I'm Fuyumi, Natsuo's my older brother, but I'm sure he's told you that.  
"Actually, he stays pretty quiet about his family, but it is an honor to meet you Fuyumi-san, I'm Asana Kouko, his girlfriend." They each offered a slight bow.

"Please just call me Fuyumi, you've been dating Natsuo for over two years now, there's no need for the formality." Fuyumi held her flaming cheeks, she blushed like Natsuo did, from the neck up, the two were very similar, easily embarrassed. "It's Natsuo's fault he's hidden you away for so long.

Natsuo blushed to match his sister, he was hiding behind Kouko, trying to deflect the blame of not introducing the two women sooner. "Ah, well you know how things are Fuyumi, with school and work and all."

"Oh, I know, no time for your poor sister anymore, both you and Sho never visit me. He'll be a little late, by the way, got caught up with some things at school," She turned to make her way into the kitchen and waved a hand towards the sitting area. "Make yourself comfortable, I have a few things to finish before he gets here, and I want to hear all about what you two have been up to."

The two women devolved into chatter as Kouko insisted on helping in the kitchen, she mostly wanted to know more about his boyfriend's friendly sister. The resemblance went further than just their looks and blushing habits, both had pursued similar fields, working with children, and had similar hobbies, which included cooking and similar quirks that had to do with steam. Natsuo would randomly chime in from the couch he was sunk into but let the women talk. But no matter how Kouko tried Fuyumi still managed to steer the conversation away from their family, Fuyumi avoided the topic as much as Natsuo did. Kouko was enjoying their conversation, and banter, feeling comfortable around people who were so obviously siblings when a knock came from the door.

"I'll get it, it's probably Shoto," Natsuo called and pried himself out of the couch cushions. From her position at the sink washing vegetables Kouko could not see the door but she could hear as the door was opened and there was a quiet exchange of greetings, not a very enthusiastic meeting between brothers.

"We're just in here Sho!" Fuyumi called out from her spot over the stove. "Come meet Kouko then you two come set the table, it's about ready."

Kouko was expecting another similar looking sibling, considering the photos she pictured more white hair and friendly demeanor, but the young man who entered the kitchen did not fit her mental image of him.

"Pleased to meet you, I am Todoroki Shoto," he bowed from the waist, deeper than the common greeting and Kouko almost forgot to reply. After a stammered greeting and sloppy bow, her hands still full of vegetables, he and Natsuo began setting the small table. But Kouko's eyes stayed fixed on the Shoto's right side as the two boys went about the dining area, Natsuo joking with his more stoic younger brother. In this day and age physical mutations are common because of quirks, but most are fairly mild, like the Todoroki's odd white hair with red highlights, or her own antennae that helped her echolocation type quirk. But mutations tended to stay consistent in families, and while it was clear that Shoto was indeed a Todoroki sibling his right side made him stand out harshly from his siblings. There was a straight line down the middle of his head that split his hair color from white to red, in the photos he had only been pictured from the left side, not showing his red hair. The red hair was not all the odd, Natsuo and Fuyumi both had red streaks, but his right eye was disfigured by a large scar that covered nearly half of his face, it looked like a burn scar, though could very well be a birth mark. It started at the dip between his nose and eye and went nearly to his ear, it disappeared beneath his bangs and went down over his cheekbone. Kouko knew it was impolite to stare, but the scar had thrown off her expectations of Natsuo's family, and she had many more questions, especially since Shoto was just about to graduate and the scar looked at least ten years old. But there was another thing, Kouko couldn't shake the feeling that she had seen Shoto somewhere before, beyond the photographs.

"Should we be waiting for Izuku, Sho?" Fuyumi's voice broke Kouko out of her thoughts and she returned to scrubbing the last few vegetables to be served. "I hope he knew he was invited, I'm sure he would have loved to meet Kouko."

"He stayed behind to help Toshinori-sensei with some things and sends his apologies."

"Ah, too bad, I would have loved to see him, you two never come visit me anymore, and neither does your brother." Fuyumi turned to face Kouko, fake sadness barely masking her joyful features. "They don't love their sister anymore, I have to go out of my way to invite them over and plan a night so that I can see my dear brothers."

Natsuo spluttered as Shoto attempted to defend himself "I am busy, and about to graduate, Fuyumi, I will visit with Izuku soon." Fuyumi burst out laughing and Kouko covered her mouth to hide her giggles, it was nice to see them acting like siblings.

The dinner continued on with sparse chatter, the siblings updating each other on things in their life. Kouko simply sat and enjoyed learning about the family, about their daily lives, the rare mentions of their childhood and any vague references to parents. But something kept bothering her about Shoto. She never really followed the news, normally caught up within her own sphere, if it didn't affect her she didn't particularly care, and this stretched to heroes as well. She had never been particularly interested in heroics, even when her grade school would have a hero visit, but she had the feeling that her lack of hero knowledge is what was holding her back now. Dinner was almost finished and the table was cleared for dessert when Kouko got her first real clues.

"Sho, could you do me a favor and make some ice for the drinks? My ice machine broke last week and I haven't had anyone out to look at it yet." Fuyumi asked as she pulled more things from the fridge.

"Of course," Shoto joined her in the kitchen and with his right hand began to create small chunks of ice to fill a bucket Fuyumi had set out. The two set the desert and drinks on the table and Fuyumi served a delicious looking chocolate cake. Kouko was about to dive in when Natsuo stopped her.

"This is much better when it's warm, don't you think, Sho?"

Shoto rolled his eyes at his brother's attempt at subtly and his left hand began to burn, he held it under everyone's plates to heat up the cake. "You know that the oven works just as well," he said.

"Yah, but this is more fun, ow!" Natsuo rubbed the back of his head from wear Fuyumi had hit him.

"Thank you, Sho," she said with a smile to her younger brother. "Kouko, why are you not eating any?"

Kouko was staring stunned at Shoto's hand where it had been on fire, then at his other that had created ice, his coloring made much more sense now, but that is not what startled her, the use of two quirks had sparked a memory from several years ago. There had been a lot of drama and news coverage surrounding a family with two prominent heroes, one of which could wield two quirks, ice and fire.

"Oh my god, you're the hero Phosphorous!" She looked around the table at the confused faces, "You're Endeavors's kids! The ones who were caught up in that trial a while ago, after the take down of the League of Villains." She looked at Shoto again "You helped with that while still being in school and singlehandedly took down that Dabi guy!" She turned and smacked Natsuo on the shoulder, "How could you not TELL ME!"

Fuyumi glared at her brother as he rubbed the back of his head, not making eye contact, "Uh, I-uh, thought you knew?" he tried lamely.

"Seriously, Natsuo! How could you not even mention that, like 'hey babe, my dad used to be the number one hero but because he's an asshole he isn't anymore,' ever thought of that?"

"We, don't really talk about it ourselves," Fuyumi cut in quietly, that's when Kouko noticed how withdrawn the siblings had become, the cheer from earlier completely gone. Then Kouko remembered the particulars of the case they had been drawn into. Soon after the take down of the League of Villains it had been revealed by an anonymous contributor that Dabi was Endeavors eldest child Touya. Due to abuse as a child, an uncontrollable quirk and his abandonment when Shoto had shown signs of a powerful quirk, Touya had been pushed away from his family and towards less than legal acts, culminating in him joining the league of villains. After this had come to light Shoto and his father had a fight, what started it was unclear, that revealed more evidence of child abuse specifically targeting Shoto and the hero had been taken to court on charges of child abuse and neglect. It had been a media nightmare and the three siblings in front of her had barely had a moment of peace while it was going on. Kouko couldn't believe that she had never made the connection, it had happened a year before she had met Natsuo and she hasn't had a clue, too caught up in exams while the trial was happening to pay much attention.

"I'm so sorry," Kouko set down her utensils and hurried from the apartment, leaving behind sullen silence.

She made it a way down the road before stopping and looking up at the dark red and purple sky, the setting sun hidden behind tall buildings. She knew that child abuse was something she would have to face someday on her chosen career as a child psychologist, but knowing it had happened to someone she knew, someone she was so close with, by someone who was supposed to be a pillar of society is something that is hard to come to terms with.

She ended up at a park, staring at the empty swings and merry go-round. The lack of children made her sad, in a place that is supposed to be full of life, but it was late and children should be in bed. After only a short while she heard footsteps, expecting Natsuo she didn't turn and look and was surprised to see Shoto sit on the other edge of the bench. Hastily wiping tears Kouko tried to think of something to say, but he training dealt with small children, not adults who had already fought and won their cases against their abusers.

"It's alright that you brought it up so suddenly," Shoto began, "I've had plenty of time to come to terms with it and move on, I don't know how well Natsuo and Fuyumi have moved on, but we were never close as children. Our father separated me from them, calling them failures, and I hated him, I hated them, it took me a while to move on, and I only managed with a lot of help." Shoto paused in his reflection, not looking at her, but looking up at the sky, imagining the stars that decorate but aren't visible in the city. "After the trial Fuyumi reached out to us, and we have tried our best to heal, to move on. Our mother has been improving and we have been working on accommodations to move her out of the hospital if she ever wishes. I think then, they could move on. I know Fuyumi blames herself, for not stepping in, for not stopping him, for not noticing what mom was going through, and I think Natsuo does too, though they were still very young as well. We'll be okay, and I know you've been good for him, for my brother. He needed someone to pull him out of his childhood, I can believe that he never told you, he didn't want to pull you into our nightmare, though he should have known you would find out eventually."

Shoto turned to look at her, putting his scar directly under the illumination of the streetlight and Kouko remembered a passing comment from the tabloids that it had been his mother that gave it to him. "Please don't let this define your relationship with Natsuo, or with us. I know Fuyumi would love a sister, and I would like another as well, as long as that's okay with you." He smiled softly, and Kouko could clearly see the resemblance between him and his brother, in his kind eyes.

Kouko sniffed and wiped her eyes again, then pulled him in for a hug "I would like a new brother and sister too, I'm glad you're okay."

Later that evening as Kouko and Natsuo walked home arm-in-arm, Kouko contemplated their life together, and though it was rather nice to have gained such special people.

"Natsuo, you should invite everyone over for dinner soon, I would like to meet Izuku and to spend more time with your Shoto and Fuyumi."

She didn't look at his face, but she could tell that a smile had broken out across his face, there was a bounce in his step and he pulled her closer to his side.

'He may not be perfectly alright now,' Kouko thought, 'but he will be, they will all be, I'll make sure of it.'


End file.
